THIS SHOW IS ALIVE …
WITH THE SOUND OF MUSIC

A classic musical celebrates the power of music to promote authenticity

How do you solve a problem like—presenting a musical that is so familiar as a movie that an audience may think they already know everything it has to offer? Director Jack O’Brien offers a solution in this revitalized version of Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein’s classic The Sound of Music (book by Howard Lindsay and Russell Crouse). O’Brien’s re-envisioning of the production begins with his decision to aesthetically set it when the story actually takes place—in 1930s Austria—rather than in the 1960s-informed look of the film. This choice is reflected in Jane Greenwood‘s costumes (lederhosen galore!) and hair design (with Tom Watson), as well as in the overall mood of the piece.

From Cayleigh Capaldi’s initial entrance as Maria to sing the show’s signature song, “The Sound of Music,” it is clear that this is a Maria with a profound spiritual connection to music and to nature.

Cayleigh Capaldi

Her connection to music allows her to dismantle the authoritarian parenting style of Captain Georg von Trapp (Kevin Earley). It also allows her to touch von Trapp’s sensitive soul. He is a music lover as well, though he has banned music from his home and his life because it brings too many painful memories of his deceased wife. Once Maria reminds him of its power to move him, he is once again able to express his love for his seven boisterous children and discover a new love for Maria. Later, music becomes a source of resistance to the Anschluss, Nazi Germany’s annexation of Austria.

Kevin Earley and Cayleigh Capaldi with the von Trapp Children:
Ariana Ferch, Eli Vander Griend, Ava Davis, Benjamin Stasiek,
Haddie Mac, Ruby Caramore, Luciana VanDette

Support for the Anschluss was widespread in Austria. Motivated by fear, and perhaps by admiration for—and fascination with—power, many ordinary Austrians used the “Heil!” greeting to express their support for Nazi rule, including von Trapp’s neighbors and household staff. Not von Trapp, however. He is deeply committed to Austria’s independence, beautifully expressed in “Edelweiss,” performed by the entire von Trapp family near the climactic conclusion of the show.

These are deeply Christian people. Maria was a convent novitiate who was sent to work as a governess after demonstrating her unfitness for the discipline of religious life, and von Trapp crosses himself repeatedly in an expression of his Catholicism.

Ian Coursey and Ariana Ferch

We don’t have any sense of how Captain von Trapp or Maria feel about Jews or the antisemitic policies of the Nazis; their resistance to the Nazi occupation is based solely on national identity. Max Dettweiler (played as gay by Nicholas Rodriguez) is a likably sympathetic go-along-to-get-along figure; one wonders how this fellow will fare under Nazi homophobia and persecution. Elsa Schraeder (Kate Loprest) is an equally likable woman who knows who she is and what she wants—unfortunately, who she ultimately is turns out to be a Nazi collaborator.

Kevin Earley, Kate Loprest, and Nicholas Rodriguez

All of which is to say that this is a production that brings depth to the plight of the famed von Trapp family, as well as to the joy of music. The children—and especially Liesl (Ariana Ferch) and Brigitta (Haddie Mac)—are charming. Pretty much every song is a familiar hit likely to stir memories; all are gorgeously performed (Jonathan Marro, music director). The nuns, anchored by Christiane Noll’s rich alto portraying Mother Abbess, render the Latin hymns with serene gravity, and an excellent orchestra knits the score together with medleys and motifs to create a musical environment that encapsulates the recurring theme of spiritual strength through music.

(standing) Cayleigh Capaldi, Kevin Earley,
(seated) Ruby Caramore, Eli Vander Griend, Ava Davis,
Luciana VanDette, Haddie Mac, Benjamin Stasiek, Ariana Ferch

Thanks to scenic designer Douglas W. Schmidt, impressive sets carry us from the majestic Austrian Alps—viewed through the captain’s tall windows—to stunning abbey interiors, with awe-inspiring Gothic rays of light (Natasha Katz, lighting) penetrating stained-glass windows.

Cayleigh Capaldi and Christiane Noll

Yes, The Sound of Music can slide into syrupy territory in the wrong hands. This production harks back to 1930s Austria to deliver a message very much for our time. Music alone won’t get us through our present crisis, but music has always fueled struggles for freedom and liberation. Think of the role of “We Shall Overcome” in the civil rights movement.

When you know the notes to sing, you can overcome almost anything.

Cayleigh Capaldi and Christiane Noll

photos by Jeremy Daniel

The Sound of Music
national tour
thru January 18, 2026 at Citizens Opera House, Boston
for tickets, visit Broadway in Boston
tour continues; for dates and cities, visit Sound of Music

for more shows, visit Theatre in Boston

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BIO: Lynne Weiss is a member of the Boston Theater Critics Association. Her work has also appeared in Literary Ladies Guide and in The Common, Black Warrior Review, and the Ploughshares Blog. She has an MFA from UMass Amherst and has received residencies from Yaddo, the Millay Colony, and Vermont Studio Center and grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council. A lifelong social justice activist, she is at work on a novel set in 1930s Cornwall. Her reviews, travel tales, and progressively optimistic opinions are on her substack.